The Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) sent a letter of greetings to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the convening of the 17th Party Congress.

Signed by our party officers, the message read as follows:

On behalf of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist) (CPGBML), and all the members and supporters of our party, we would like to extend our warmest fraternal greetings to you on the forthcoming seventeenth national congress of the Communist Party of China.

This congress will be an event of great importance in the political life of your party, carrying weighty significance for the destiny of the working class and people of China and hence for the future of the entire world.

From its founding in 1921 as a small party with but a few dozen members to today, when the Communist Party of China counts tens of millions of members in its ranks and is responsible for the lives of around a quarter of the world’s people, your party has waged one difficult and heroic struggle after another and, going through twists and turns and all kinds of ordeals, has demonstrated a great ability to sum up experiences, correct mistakes and find the way forward.

As the great leader of the Chinese people Comrade Mao Zedong wrote in one of his poems:

“Bitter sacrifice strengthens bold resolve

“To make sun and moon shine in new skies.”

The founding of the People’s Republic of China, 58 years ago this month, changed the face not only of China, but also of Asia and the world. Since that time, under successive generations of your collective leadership, the old and backward face of China has been banished forever, the people’s lives have been improved beyond measure, the comprehensive national strength has been vastly increased, and the ancient land of China, once despised and bullied as a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, has today stood up as a dignified power to whom no imperialist bully can dictate.

Comrades, we rejoice in these victories as though they were our own. At the same time, we share your view that there can be no room for complacency as many difficulties and dangers, some perhaps even more challenging than those of the past, still lie ahead, and that communists can never afford to relax their vigilance. We have followed with sympathetic interest the serious efforts made by the leadership of your party, with Comrade Hu Jintao as General Secretary, to clearly identify the challenges of the present situation and to address them by developing a scientific course of development, one that is sustainable, balanced and puts people first.

Although the circumstances in which our two parties work are vastly different, we feel ourselves to be united with you on the basis of adherence to the universal, tried and tested principles of Marxism Leninism and proletarian internationalism.

We shall follow the proceedings of your congress with interest and take this opportunity to affirm our militant solidarity with the Communist Party and people of China in your struggle to further develop China so that it may become a strong, prosperous socialist country that will make its due contribution to the communist goal of the emancipation of all humanity.

The CPGB-ML also sent a message of greetings to Comrade Hu Jintao congratulating him on the success of the congress and on his re-election as General Secretary.